The Opelousas courier., 1887-10-29

BE OT16f6Q 80 wen rne faiF S6x rIdSS
Caught the injection IS. Beifttling, Not
5eautifying.
The era of slang is upon us with a
breadth that is almost appalling. Not
wholly the slang that might. be defined
as the burlesque OF c~olloquial form of
expression, the language of low humor,
or the jargon of thieves and Migrants,
but a species hat is almost as repre-
hensible. It will not do to apologize
for it by saying that "slang is probably
as old as human speech,n and that the
early writer's INDUCED in it, especially
tue Greek and Roman dramatists and
while we may speak and write against
the pernicious habit, we suspect that
we will not grow disguised enough with
it to thoroughly uproot it until it has
reached its climax.
The worst fact about it is that it is
not confined to the low and illiterate,
but has invaded the public schools, Gull
tured society and the literature of our
books. | admit that some of the slang
expressions are forcible and full of adj
equateness, among which | might name
'sired out" Colossal cheek etc. Still,
even they ought to be tabooed.
But what excuse can possibly be of
fered for such words as ''gailoot," "sar-
dine" "~chump," "kicker," s'kid," etc. ?
Or such expressions as Let him go,
Gallagher,'@f'Waltze off on his ear"
u should smoker" Nov you're shout
in" etc. They are scarcely emphatic
and certainly not polite. Even the fair
sex have caught the infection and speak
about his ''royal nibs," or the ''howling
swell y the girl of to. day is ready to
"bet !ler bottom dollar" wants to know
what you are givin' her." let's you
know that you are "ofs your base" and
insists that you shall ''come off" IVA.
mose," "skedaddle,' " absQuatulate,'
aud all that. You do her a slight favor
aud she e1claims. "Oh, thanks, awful
ly!" Why she should thank you witt
reverend fear'is beyond your compre,
hension. Ask her to sing your favorite
sentimental ballad and she will proba-
bly, say, "oh, really, Mr., l cawn't.
It's too utterly, too-too Y
While playing lawn tennis with her
she suddenly cries out, "Oh, you've CIV
en- me such a twist.n You feel exceed
ins5y alarmed you are afraid that her
collar bone is broken or that at least
her wrist has been d~islocated. You
discover, however, Tat it is but tennis
slang and that your sympathy has been
wasted. She confidently tells you that
Jennie Somebody is ''no good" and had
the "cheekn to propose to "stratch'' her
at the meeting of the club, because she
hadn't " forked over the spondoolicks"
for the last quarter. All that is to be
deprecated, but the girls, heaven bless
them, look SO pretty, and use the terms
SO arbessly that | haven't the heart To
be severe in my reproof.
1t isn't pleasant to be aceosted by
ones 5-year-oid hopeful as ian old
shpozei3 er to know that he is lying in
Walt 70 "knock the stutin,n out of a
neigtbor's boy, or to ''wipe up the
floor with him. OTTO hear our short
skirted but high spirited daughter tell
the aforesaid brother that she wishes
The other boy would paste him on the
%snoot,s or tkick him clean out the boz
or "into the middle Of next weC-
don't know that | am especially sensi-
tive, and yet I must say that such ex-
pressions send the creeps uplaY back.
The editor 'sswiggs a hasl @n9l ;nthe
hired girl is a ''pot rastlS' when a
thing suits US it's "jnst tqhe ch5ese;'
when too noisy we are Gold to BSlry
up OF to suspend = wien cunning
on the alert we say, ssnoI if the cokgt
knows itself" if one dag is not AVN
able sss'mother one'' isl Chen we die II
'spass in u checks affVVsspnt away ~
ice,n and are fsally PLANTED" So1
might go on aluminium. You can
think, / am sure, of at least a hundred
words and phrases to which I have
made no reference. For inventing cute
words and phrases our country leads
the procession. They are clever and
a~ppuDpriate, get into the topical song,
the public 'fcatch on,n and they live
and thrive, and in many instances the
dictionary finally legitimizes them.
Slang, | insist, is the fungus on the
stem. 1t q not the grated fruit. It's
the scum oflanguage. Ifoften beIitMes;
it never beauties. five all spoke and
wrote in q less exaggerated manner we
would be less exaggerated 10 our ways
of life and thought. Life, as we'll as
speech9s would perhaps grow more Sim
pie, more true, more worth living
"0bserver" in Philadelphill
@N.ALars~ %~~nm~sA..